Reflections

Dear Tori,

Great things are happening. Despite not having any lights in my apartment, I have realized just how much positive thinking helps a PCV. Construction is under way for my rehearsal room. Bulgarian donors are helping make this happen. The best thing about this is that my students and colleagues can see how generous their fellow countrymen can be, that all these things are from Bulgarians who want to help. It makes me tear up every time I think about how much people have helped me with this project just because they want to. Some Bulgarians do care about this region. Oh, kolko sum 6tasliv. 2 years and 7 months ago, I would never have guessed that I would still be in Bulgaria, as content as I am right now. This job is tough and it's not easy, especially when you love kids as much as I do, and see and hear some things that you don't want to see or hear. But it feels so good when you realize that all your hard work has paid off....when your kids listen, when they want to participate, when they actually want to learn, when your colleagues catch your positivity....when programs become implemented and when your dream project, something that you feel the school needs to implement....happens :) Despite all the "colorful" things I have gone through in Bregovo, I can leave this place knowing that my service that has meant so much to me, was worth it. I didn't give up 3 years here, I lived it to the fullest. These three years have been the best 3 years of my life, I can honestly say. As I sit here in my kitchen, I am constantly reminded of the generosity and hospitality of this country (as I look at the 24 jars of compot, pickles, and other jarred food that my students have been constantly giving me since last week for no apparent reason). I was at dinner with a friend of mine, and he asked me how I can live with what little I have here in Bulgaria. I told him that I came here with nothing, and have gained so much in the end, a family, friends, and 3 years worth of memories. I have left my own personal legacy in Bregovo and in Bulgaria, and I hope that Bregovo knows that they have changed me in ways they will never know. As Joe Reid wrote in the b-25 yearbook, 'every nagosti a banquet, every living allowance a fortune, every horo a parade.' Totally my Bulgaria.